Ground-terminal.



A. R. RHEINBERGER.

GROUND TERMINAL.

APPLICATION FILED IAN. l5, I914.

1,197,954.. PatentedSept. 12,1916.

Witnesses: I 1,377,220

Zf G RP/Lea'negen ALFONSO R. RHEINBERGER, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

GROUND-TERMINAL.

Specification of Letters ?atent.

Patented Sept. 12, 1916.

Application filed January 15, 1914. Serial No. 812,267.

1 '0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, fXLFONSOR. Rrnnnnnnonn,a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Paul, in the county ofRamsey and State of Minnesota, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Ground- Terminals, of which the following is aspecification.

An object of this invention is to provide an improvement in terminalrods for electrical conductors, which is simple and inexpensive inconstruction, efficient in operation and adapted to provide means forsecuring an electrical conductor to said rod so that it cannot beseparated and lost when not in use.

More particularly this invention is an improvement upon the constructionof connectors for ground terminals set forth in my companion applicationSerial Number 537,199, filed Jan, 10, 1910. In the accompanying drawingforming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side elevation of adetail of a ground terminal showing the connector securing an electricalconductor thereto, a portion of said terminal being in section; Fig. 2is a section upon the line X X of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a plan of theconnector.

In the drawing A indicates a portion of a ground terminal of usual formconsisting in the illustration of a rod flattened on one end to form abroad portion 2 having a centrally disposed circular passage 3 throughwhich the connector B is secured. The connector B consists of a bar ofelectrical conducting material such as metal semi-circular in crosssection and bent between its ends, having its flat surface 4 facinginward. This bar being formed as described produces a pair of sides 5and 6 converging outwardly toward their free ends and adapted to passfreely through said passage 3 and extend beyond the side of the portion2 of the rod. The median portion forming the curved end 7 of theconnector, being larger in diameter than the diameter of the passage 3,prevents the connector passing entirely through said passage. Theadjacent fiat portions of the surface 4 of the sides 5 and 6 are formedwith a pair of longitudinal grooves 8, which are deeper in the free endsof the sides, gradually diminish in depth toward the inner end of theconnector and terminate a short distance from the curved end portion 7.The passageway formed by the grooves 8 is adapted to receive the end ofan electrical conductor such as 9 freely when the connector is movedwith its free ends back in the passage 3 into receiving position. henthe conductor is adjusted as stated the connector is forced forward withits apex end projecting from the side of the portion 2 of the terminalrod, by pounding or pressing upon the curved end 7, thus wedging theconnector in the wall of the passage 3 and securely holding theconductor 9 in close contact with said rod. The outer end of the side 6of the connector is formed with an enlarged head 10 projecting beyondthe end of the opposite side 5, said head being formed by spreading thematerial of the side and being of suflicient size to prevent theconnector passing backwardly through the passage 3 prior to theconductor 9 being in serted in the connector. Before a conductor isinserted in the connector, the connector is disposed freely in thepassage 3, the amount of free play longitudinally being limited by theend 7 and head 10.

A connector of the construction described is very simple and inexpensivein construction, it being made out of a. single piece of material whichcan be formed by a few number of operations in the process ofmanufacture, and which will produce an efficient electrical connectionbetween the conductor which it holds and the wall of the terminal rod inwhich it is seated.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described the principlesof operation of my invention together with the apparatus which I nowconsider to represent the best embodiment thereof, but I desire to haveit understood that the construction shown is only illustrative and thatthe invention can be carried out by other means and applied to usesother than those above set forth within the scope of the followingclaims.

Having described my invention what I claim as new and desire to protectby Let-' ters Patent is i 1. In combination with a. ground terminalhaving a transverse passage therethrough, a connector passing throughsaid passage consisting of a bar bent between its ends to form two sidesconverging from their connected portion, their outer free ends beingfreely disposed longitudinally through said passage and adapted to closeupon a conductor by wedging in said passage when moved inwardly and theend of one of said sides being extended beyond the end of the other sideand enlarged to form a head adapted to prevent the entire removal ofsaid connector from said rod but permitting a limited free longitudinalmovement outwardly.

2. In combination with a terminal rod having a transverse passagetherethrough, a connector consisting of a strip of conducting materialbent between its ends to form a pair of sides converging toward theirfree ends, said sides being adapted to pass through the passage in saidterminal rod, the large end of said connector being larger than thediameter of said passage and the sides of said connector being adaptedto receive and clamp an electrical conductor between them when saidsides are wedged in said passage, one side of said connector having itsouter end extended beyond the end of the other side and enlarged to forma stop, of greater width than the diameter of said passage to preventsaid connector being detached from said terminal rod before saidelectrical conductor is clamped between said sides and so positioned asto allow a limited free outward movement of said connectorlongitudinally in said passage before a conductor is clamped by saidsides and held on said rod.

3. A connector of the class described consisting of a bar bentintermediate its ends to form a curved portion serving as a stop, thesides thus formed gradually converging toward their free ends to closeunder wedging action, one of said sides extending beyond the companionside and being enlarged to form a stop.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses,

ALFONSO R. RHEINBERGER.

Vitnesses:

STELLA Vnsonnmannonn, F. G. BRADBURY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

